Chan Lowe: Boy Scouts of America ousts lesbian pack leader

Boy Scouts of America ousts lesbian pack leader

May 1, 2012|by Chan Lowe

The Supreme Court, in a 2000 decision, held that as a private organization, the Boy Scouts of America can choose whomever it wants act as leaders and adult role models within its ranks. Several states, however, have decided that excluding gays and lesbians from the pool of selectees is discriminatory.

The BSA doesn’t offer merit badges for tolerance or inclusiveness. I checked, because I wanted to be accurate. It does, however, award them for citizenship in the community and the nation. Now it may be that the BSA is just lagging behind the times. Maybe its definition of “citizenship” means being an upstanding citizen in the America of the 1950s.

It also awards a badge for “family life.” Since the pack leader who was ousted is the mother of one of the pack members, the BSA would appear to be sending conflicting signals about the meaning of family, certainly in the 21st Century. The ouster is tantamount to suggesting to these impressionable youth that they should reject and ostracize anyone in their families who happens to be gay.

Considering the way our country is moving culturally, this is setting Scouts up to be social outcasts by the time they reach adulthood, because they will have been indoctrinated with the idea that there is something wrong with gays at a time when most of their fellow citizens will view that attitude as quaint and repugnant.

Let us hope the BSA eventually comes to its senses and realizes that being a good citizen means caring for all one’s fellow citizens, regardless of race, creed or sexual orientation.

The BSA also awards badges in rifle and shotgun shooting, and as has been repeatedly demonstrated, intolerance and firearms proficiency can be a tragic combination.